Some Action

The Band That Sucked the Life Out of Rock n Roll and Killed Itself in the Process

Garage punk is probably nine-tenths attitude. The snarl, the strut, the come-on, the spit—that’s all here on Some Action’s full-length debut, in this round dozen of Ramones-influenced, hard-core-leaning punk songs. Some Action—who’ve shared stages with NYC’s Little Killers, DC Snipers, and other garage heavyweights—spend most of their time rocking rapid-fire three-chorders here. That’s fine, fun stuff, and highlights like the pile-driver assault of “Don’t You Look for Me”, the blistering sting of “Live and Learn”, and the ricocheting adrenalized speed of “Give it Back to the Animals” score high on the Saturday Night rampage index. Put it this way: you could crank any of these cuts to eleven and start hurting people… they’re that sharp, that hard, that fast. But the other one-tenth of great punk garage—vulnerability, soul, humanity—gets short-shrift here, emerging only with the raw, romantic swagger of “What’s It Gonna Take”. The song, slowed to a chug and spit out in pieces, is hands down the album’s best, a wounded anthem for hard-time lovers, and a promise that Some Action may just be getting started.

The Band That Sucked the Life Out of Rock 'n Roll and Killed Itself in the Process